HIRAM ROBBINS (Biographical data abstracted from Abington, Brockton and Hanover, Massachusetts vital records, pertaining census records and other related sources cited in the text) Re: The Nicholas Robbins Family, No. 7.21.2
Hiram Robbins, son of Bartlett Robbins and Mary Hersey, was born in July, 1830 at Abington, Plymouth County, Massachusetts. Hiram was engaged in the shoe manufacturing business, a prominent industry in Abington and Brockton, throughout his life. The Fillebrown Family website notes the marriage of Hiram Robbins and Susanna C. Stearns on October 10, 1854 at Mansfield, Massachusetts. Susanna was the daughter of Isaac Stearns (Jr) and Sarah Fillebrown, born June 7, 1830 at Mansfield.
Hiram and Susanna resided at Abington throughout their married life. Hiram plied his trade during the period when shoemaking evolved from hand-stitching to machine manufacturing. A significant portion of the shoe requirements of the U.S. Army during the Civil War were supplied by Hiram and his fellow shoe manufacturers in Abington and Brockton. All three of Hiram and Susanna's sons followed their father into the shoemaking business.
Susanna C. (Stearns) Robbins died at Abington on April 26, 1897, age 66 years, 10 months and 19 days. Her death records indicate that she suffered from some form of paralysis which caused her death. Hiram died four years later on April 1, 1901, age 70 years, 8 months and 15 days, also at Abington. The children recorded to Hiram and Susanna Robbins included:
1. Lizzie Robbins was born September 6, 1855 at Abington. She resided with her parents throughout her life. She died of pneumonia at age 50 on December 11, 1905.
2. Horace F. Robbins was born in November, 1856 at Abington. He married Lizzie E. Rose on March 16, 1879 at Hanover, Massachusetts. Lizzie was born in Hanover around 1859, the daughter of Joshua and Ann Rose. Horace and Lizzie resided in Hanover, where Horace was employed in the shoemaking business throughout his life. They were still living in Hanover at the time of the 1920 Census. They had one child, Kenneth L. Robbins, born in August, 1893. As an adult, Kenneth was noted in census records as a salesman and later manager of a grocery store. Also according to census records, his wife's name was Mildred and they married around 1920. A son, Kenneth L. Robbins (Jr), was born around 1921.
3. Charles Herbert Robbins was born August 9, 1858 at Abington. He married Meena Francis Farrar on September 2, 1884 at Abington. Meena was born on September 2, 1861 in Abington, the daughter of Lucian Farrar and Ellen Noyes. Charles and Meena resided in Abington, where he was employed in a shoe factory as a cutter and later as an equipment operator. They had two sons, Charles Francis Robbins, born June 30 1889 at Abington and George Whitney Robbins, born August 30, 1893, also at Abington. At the time of the 1910 Census, Charles Francis Robbins was employed as a machinist in a shoe factory and George Whitney Robbins was working as a mechanic for an automobile company.
4. John Robbins was born in November, 1862 at Abington. He married first, Leila M. Thorpe, on June 28, 1900 at Brockton. Leila was born in July, 1870 at
HIRAM ROBBINS
The
Nicholas Robbins Family
Kent, Connecticut, the daughter of Edward Thorpe and Laura Kirk. After marriage, John and Leila resided in Brockton, where John was employed in a shoe factory as a cutter and Leila worked as a milliner. Their first child, Margaret L. Robbins, was born on September 9, 1901. Tragically, on February 24, 1903, Leila died of complications shortly after the birth of a second child, a boy named Donald B. Robbins, who was stillborn. On June 29, 1907, John married secondly, Katie Thomas Litchfield at Abington. Katie was the daughter of Thomas P. and Elizabeth C. Litchfield, born June 3, 1872 at Abington. After marriage, John and Katie made their home in Abington with Katie's widowed father and John's daughter, Margaret. The family was blessed with a second child, Donald L. Robbins, on February 2, 1913. By 1920 John had become employed by the New Jerusalem Church and was recorded in both the 1920 and 1930 Censuses as an Agent for the church.
5. Susan B. Robbins was born August 9, 1872 at Abington. Susan was a writer. She gained a modicum of fame in 1894, when she was called upon to preside over the National Amateur Press Association (NAPA) convention. According to the NAPA website, "Miss Susan B. Robbins, a story writer from Abington, Massachusetts, and secretary of the National Amateur Press Association in 1894, called the annual convention at Boston to order, the first young lady to preside over the deliberations of the Association…The Great Railroad Strike, having cut down on the attendance, including the Association's executive officer, prompted Miss Robbins to assume the leading role, thus becoming the first woman to preside over an Association convention. It was not until 1909 that a woman was elected president and presiding officer of the Association." Unfortunately, Susan was to die of stomach cancer in January, 1910, at the early age of 37. She was buried at Mt. Vernon Cemetery in Abington.
Submitted by Lawrence G. Robbins, August, 2009. Many thanks to Jerry Fillebrown for the Fillebrown and Stearns vital records. For further information on those families, Jerry may be reached by email at Jerry@Fillebrown.com. Queries concerning Hiram Robbins and his family may be addressed to Lawrence G. Robbins at boprobbins@yahoo.com.